Brought to you byConcho Valley CouncilBoy Scouts of AmericaUpdated August 14, 2006

Fort
Concho was established on December 4, 1867, after the army had to abandon
Fort Chadbourne (located north of what is now Bronte, Texas) for lack of
good water. The new fort was located at the junction of the North
and South Concho Rivers. The fort consisted of some forty buildings
and was constructed of native limestone. Fort Concho was closed in
June 1889 after having served this area for some twenty-two years.
Today, the fort is a National Historical Landmark.

The Fort Concho Historical
Trail takes you not only through this Fort, but also along some of the
streets of the settlement of Santa Angela, now San Angelo that was developed
to serve the needs of the men who were stationed at the Fort.

In 1870, a trader and promoter
named Bart DeWitt bought 320 acres of land for $1.00 an acre, marked off
town lots and offered them for sale. The town of Santa Angela grew
from just a few people to the thriving city it is today. On the trail
you will take downtown, you will see some of the old buildings of this
early community as well as some of the other historical areas along the
Concho River. The Concho River was named from the mussel shells found
in the river.

THOSE ELIGIBLE TO HIKE THE
TRAIL

All members of the Boy Scouts
of America, the Girl Scouts USA and all adults, parents and Scouters who
go with them, are eligible to hike the trail and earn the Fort Concho Historical
Trail Patch if they follow the trail requirements as listed.

TRAIL REQUIREMENTS

1. The trail consists of
a hike of two + miles on the course described herein. Use this booklet
as a guide

2. Those taking the
trail are reminded that they are representatives of the Boy Scouts of America
and Girl Scouts USA. Their personal appearance should always be neat;
they should wear their uniforms correctly, with proper insignia.
They should be extremely courteous, and render service where needed.

3. We recommend that
you hike the trail by Units or Girl Scout Troops or Patrols. Each
group must have at least two competent adult leaders (one of whom must
be over twenty-one) in the group.

4. All groups outside
the San Angelo area must have an official local tour permit obtained from
your Council ServiceCenter. Groups traveling
under 500 miles to participate in the hike must have a Local Tour Permit;
those traveling over 500 miles must have a National Tour Permit.
All Girl Scouts must have a parent permission slip signed prior to the
hike and Troop travel permission if from out of town.

5. The Fort Concho
Historical Trail begins at the City Park on the corner of Magdalen Street
and Concho Street. There is free parking around the park and picnic tables
are available for your convenience.

6. The Trail ends at
Fort Concho. You may, if you wish, purchase a ticket and tour the
Fort. (Or use this guide to walk around) Tickets are $3.00 for adults;
military and Senior citizen $2.00 and $1.50 for students. The museum
is open from 10:00 A.M. until 5:00 P.M. Tuesday through Saturday, and 1:00
PM until 5:00 p.m. on Sunday. The museum is closed on Mondays. Fort
Concho has a separate patch for sale in their GIFT shop

7. Upon completion
of the Trail and the hike notes, you may purchase your Fort Concho Historical
Trail Patches at the Boy Scout Council Office, 104 West River Drive, from
8:00 A.M. until 5:00 P.M. Monday through Friday or by mail at P.O. Box
1584, San Angelo, TX 76902-1584. Each historical patch costs $4.00

The Fort Concho Historical
Trail begins at City Park, located at the corner of

Magdalen Street and Concho
Avenue.

In the Northwest part of
the park is a building that was originally the Central Fire Station, built
in 1928. The park you are in formed the eastern boundary of Bart
DeWitt's original purchase. It was also where the first dairy
was located and where cattle were slaughtered for Fort Concho.

Bart DeWitt purchased this
section of town, some 320 acres of land, for one dollar an acre with a
loan from San Antonio investor Marcus Koenigheim. The land
was marked off into town lots in 1870 and sold to the general public. The
town was named either Saint Angela or Santa Angela in honor of DeWitt’s
deceased wife. The Post Office later changed the name to San Angelo.
DeWitt named Magdalen Street after his wife's sister, Mother Magdalen of
the Ursuline Academy in San Antonio. Of course, Concho Street, now
called Concho Avenue, was named for the river.

Cross the street and walk
on the North side of Concho Avenue going west.

Along this block, Mrs. Annie
Tankersley, the first white female pioneer in the Concho Valley, operated
the Tankersley Hotel. A strong-minded woman, she faced down an angry
mob of soldiers during the Soldiers Riots of 1881. Her first hotel,
a wooden structure, burned and she replaced it with a fireproof adobe structure,
but it was destroyed in the flood of 1882.

Look across the street
to your left, you will see a long building with large arched windows.

This building was built in
1928
for the Terraplane and Packard Automobile Dealership. International
Harvester Co. was located here from 1933 until it was heavily damaged by
fire in 1967. The cast stone on the front of this building was designed
and cast by Mr. Dwight Holmes, a local artist. The building now houses
the operations for ___________________________________.

Here at the corner of
Oakes and Concho was the beginning of the original Santa Angela.

DeWitt named Oakes Street
for a Union Colonel, James Oakes, who had once fought an Indian battle
in the western reaches of the Concho.

Here at the Northeast
corner of the intersection (now a parking lot), William S. Veck made
his mark on Santa Angela.

Following the Civil War,
Veck had won a job as government wagon master in 1865, which brought him
to Ft. Concho in 1868. He claimed land on North Concho and began
to ranch there. He married Katalina Wuertemberg in 1872, and built the
first store in Santa Angela the same year. A saloon and his home
were also in this location. Veck tore down the saloon and built the
Veck-Sterrett Bank, designed by Oscar Ruffini, in 1884.

This was Ruffini's first
San Angelo building designed after the construction of the Tom Green County
Courthouse that same year.

Look across the street
at the southeast corner of this intersection. The was the location
of the first newspaper in San Angelo, THE CONCHO TIMES, was printed. The
first issue went on sale April 24, 1880.

Cross Oakes Street going
west.

Look for the Blacksmith mural
by artist Crystal Goodman. Historic Murals of San Angelo, Inc. organized
in 2002 and has placed three historically correct murals in the Historic
City Center. One of the murals is the Blacksmith mural. Blacksmithing
was an important early day business in San Angelo. Registered brands
of early WestTexas ranches can be seen on the border of the mural.

While standing at the mural,
look to your right and you will see the Cactus Hotel. This is the
tallest building in San Angelo. It was built in 1929 by Conrad Hilton
at a cost of $900,000. The hotel does not host any overnight guests,
but many businesses have offices there and parts of the building can be
rented for meetings, weddings, proms or receptions.

Go back to the corner
of Oakes and Concho and begin walking west.

At 34 East Concho is
the old Buck-Cox Auto Dealership. The building was built in 1903.

Look across the street at
35
East Concho which is now: _________________________________________________

The original structure on
this corner was a saloon. In 1882 it became The Concho National Bank.
The main part of the Eggemeyer’s building was constructed in 1911 as a
Buick dealership. On the West Side, the wall of an existing building was
used, which is believed to date about 1880. In 1927, a Plymouth dealership
took over the building until 1935, when Angelo Spring and Axle purchased
the property. They maintained their business there (Angelo Automotive)
until 1992. Bobby and Karen Eggemeyer, owners and proprietors of
the building now, had their son design the exterior awning of the building.
It is fashioned after the building awning found in Fredericksburg, TX.
Inside, the building has the original tin ceiling and four fireplace flues.
It was originally heated by potbellied stoves like the one in the Northeast
corner of the store. Light is provided to the interior of the building
by a huge skylight towards the back of the room. The Eggemeyers recycled
materials from other old San Angelo buildings including lights from Montgomery
Ward, the mezzanine from Holcombe-Blanton, and the bricks with the stars
imprinted on them from M.L. Leddy's.

Note: This store has many
breakable items. If you go in to look around, please supervise the
children closely. The parking lot next to the Sassy Fox business was
originally the location of S.Lapowski and Brothers general
mercantile store. Sam, Jacob and Nathan Lapowski owned stores in
Abilene, Colorado City and San Angelo.

As you continue down the
north side of Concho street, you will come to the restored buildings
that once housed the San Angelo National Bank, Johnson and Taylor Dry Goods
Store and the Schwartz and Raas general merchandising store. Look up at
the top of the buildings. The dates at the top of the buildings read ________,
_________, and _______. Stop and read the historical marker
that gives the history of these buildings.

Look across the street
at the four buildings that are now Cooper Interiors.

Beginning on the left, the
first building was a buggy factory, the second was Santa Angela's first
bakery, the third a carriage display shop, and the fourth building housed
the carriage factory. The veneer front of the building was
added in the 1930's. The metal ceilings inside are original and the rock
and concrete walls between each of the buildings are two feet thick!

Notice the vacant lot
between the Cooper’s and the six story old hotel. This may have
been the location of the Gray Mule Saloon, described by ranchman John A.
Loomis as "a vicious place." In his memoirs, he wrote:

"Due to
a scarcity of lumber and carpenters, sheeting partitions were common.
There was such a
partition between the Gray Mule and a small restaurant. One evening,
when I reached town too late for
supper at the hotel, I went into this "eatery" next door. While I
was eating I heard a row start in the
saloon. As this was the usual thing in the Gray Mule I paid no attention
to it until a man suddenly came
head first through the muslin partition, barely missing my table, and fell
on the floor on his back. After he
was helped to his feet he soon recovered and left, swearing vengeance.
Later I learned that the fellow got
his vengeance that evening. He had another fight with the same man.
With a razor folded over his fist he
struck the man in the neck and almost cut his head off."

At 18 East Concho,
you will see _______________housed in a building that was built in 1909.
The rooms upstairs were rented out by the many cowboys who came to town
in the late 1800's through the 1940's

In 1890 Mr. B.C. Alexander
established “Concho Saddlers” and opened his shop at 8 East Concho in 1902.
About 1905, the business moved to another area of town. The firm
changed hands several times over the next 80 years, but finally moved back
to this location. Famous customers included Will Rogers, Jack Dempsey
and Pancho Villa.

On the Northeast corner
of Chadbourne and Concho is_______________________________________.

The building was built in
the 1880's; this was the Arc Light Saloon until 1918 (prohibition).
Saloonkeeper Tom McClosky kept good order and catered to the more respectable
customers. He was a Canadian ex-heavyweight prizefighter, and a good
businessman who won the respect of everyone in San Angelo. Later,
when the Alexander family operated a restaurant here, they had a mural
painted on the East wall showing local citizens standing at the bar of
the old saloon. The mural was painted from an old photograph.
The mural is still there.

Across the street on the
South east corner of Concho and Chadbourne stands a former hotel. It
is a large ______story brick building. In 1878, Ernest Nimitz established
The Nimitz Hotel at this location. This corner of Concho Avenue has
an interesting history.

According to John Loomis,
in 1881, "a Negro soldier was killed in Charlie Wilson's saloon by Thomas
McCarthy, a rancher from Brady Creek. This unfortunate incident led
to a riot by the Negro troopers at the fort. They surrounded the
Nimitz Hotel, where they thought McCarthy was being held and demanded that
he be surrendered to them. Before the affair had been settled the
Nimitz Hotel had been riddled with bullets. A precarious peace finally
came with the arrival of Ranger Captain Bryan Marsh and a number of Texas
Rangers who warned General B.H. Grierson to keep the troops at the fort.
It was incidents such as this that gave the "village across the river"
such a bad reputation." This became known as the Soldiers Riot of
1881.

In 1893, Nimitz's
cook got into an argument and killed his helper in the kitchen. He
tried to cover up his deed by setting fire to the kitchen. Although
the entire hotel burned down, the cook's crime was still revealed.
Nimitz then moved his hotel to another location, and a two-story, 40 room
Landon Hotel was built on this site.

On August 10, 1902,
the Landon Hotel was also destroyed by fire. There was an explosion
in the kitchen, and the night clerk roused Mr. and Mrs. Landon who proceeded
to raise an alarm for the two volunteer fire departments. The entire
block was consumed by the fire, which even scorched the brush along the
North Concho River. Mrs. Landon and seven others died in the fire.
A new three-story Landon Hotel was then built of brick; but it, too, was
destroyed by fire in 1925. It was said that the heat from those flames
was so intense that even the wooden paving blocks on Chadbourne began to
smolder. A five-story Naylor Hotel was rebuilt in the same location,
and it was later renamed the Town House. The hotel was closed in
1983.

On September 7, 1908,
the first trolleys of the San Angelo Power and Traction Company
rolled up Chadbourne Street from the Landon Hotel. The trolley took
people to the new subdivision of Lake View, located some three miles North
of San Angelo, to try to interest them in buying lots there. The streetcar
changed owners several times and was purchased in l909 by Sam Crowther,
who renamed it the San Angelo Street Railway Company. It went out
of business in late 1915, but the old rails are still in the street, underneath
the pavement.

CHADBOURNE Street was
named in honor of Lieutenant Theodore L. Chadbourne, who was killed on
May 9, 1846 at the battle of Resaca de la Palma of the Mexican War.
He was 23. The leather shoulder strap, the hole beneath the buckle
that was made by the fatal bullet, and his sword and scabbard are on exhibit
at the Ft. Concho Museum.

Cross Chadbourne and continue
walking west on the north side of Concho.

On the Northwest corner of
Chadbourne and Concho (now a parking lot) once stood a picket-type
log house built by Joseph Weber. When the circuit riders came to
town, services were held at the Weber home, with Mrs. Weber playing the
organ. Later, Macarthur Cullen Ragsdale married Liza Weber and bought
this property. There he built his photography studio. He had made
his first visit to Fort Concho in 1875, and moved to San Angelo in 1880.
He is credited with recording the pictorial history of the community.
Ragsdale died in San Angelo in 1944 at the age of 95.

At Chadbourne and Concho,
you
will see another mural by artist Crystal Goodman. This one was completed
in 2005. The mural depicts the 200 block of South Chadbourne around
1908. The streets were paved with wood blocks approximately
4”X 4” X 12” which were placed on end to provide the pavement for traffic
which at the time included horses, wagons, early vintage automobiles and
the street car you see in the mural. Extensive research has been
done to be sure that all buildings and businesses were in existence during
this time period.

On the Southwest corner
of Chadbourne and Concho was the home of the Jackson, Hicks, Jones
Horse and Mule Company. Much later Cole’s Army/Navy surplus store
was located in the building. This building and the building to the
right of it were designed by Oscar Ruffini. At one time, there was
on open-air movie theater located on the roof of the corner building.
It was operated by "Dad" Spooner. The building was destroyed by fire.
In an effort to beautify the boarded-up building, murals have been painted
on it. The murals show pictures of _________________________________________________________________________________________

Occupying most of the
block on the south side of Concho was the Elkhorn Wagon Yard owned by James
W. Johnson.

The yard was one of three
wagon yards in town in the 1880's. Each yard was from 300 to 400
feet square and well equipped. They had small pens, several sheds
and a camp-house in addition to the main building where the feed was stored.
The wagon yard took the place of hotels and garages. Small towns
in the surrounding area depended on San Angelo for food, lumber, wire,
windmills, clothing and furniture; many ranchmen would make only two trips
to San Angelo a year bringing their families, and camping in the wagon
yards with the freighters and others. They brought their bedrolls,
bought food and cooked it over stoves or campfires. In the early
1900's, there were as many as eight yards in San Angelo; but after the
automobile came to town, Elkhorn Wagon Yard was, by 1929, the only
one in town. In 1943, even this yard folded.

On your right is 16 West
Concho, which cost $75,000.00 to build in 1928 as Ragsdale Auto
Company. M.C. Ragsdale had retired from the photography business
by 1918 to sell automobiles.

At 16 1/2 West Concho
was the Concho Livery Stable. The first city directory, published
in 1908, listed several stage lines operating from here:
Arden Stage Line, Eola Stage Line, Ozona Stage Line and Sterling City Stage
Line.

The building at 18 West
Concho housed the first radio station between Dallas and El Paso in the
1920's.

KGFI was built by Henry Ragsdale
(M.C. Ragsdale's son) so his mother could listen to music. E. C.
GUNTER obtained the 10-watt transmitter in Georgetown. This building
has been built on top of the Concho Livery Stable. Walk into the parking
lot and you can still see the small square holes in the concrete where
air was provided for each stall of the stable!

The building at 24, 26,
and 28 West Concho is now ______________________________________.
It was built in 1928 as a warehouse that sold farms and ranch tools including
windmills. Mr. E.C. Gunter operated Gunter's Appliance Store here
from 1936 to 1945. He had the largest appliance store west of Ft.
Worth at the time.

The cornerstone at 30 West
Concho, right next door, now an empty garage reads_______________________

__________________________________________________________________.

Wendland was once employed
by Findlater Hardware and did sheet metal work. This was the location
of his early sheet metal plant.

Cross Irving Street, then
turn south and cross Concho and continue walking south on Irving St.
Watch for traffic. You are now at the corner of Concho and
Irving Streets. The exact reason for the naming of Irving Street
is not known, but it is thought that it was named for the great American
author, Washington Irving.

As you come to the crest
of the hill before you start down toward the river, look all around you
and try to visualize how this country looked when Fayette Tankersley wrote:
"The grass was stirrup-high and there was no trees except along the river.
Everywhere there was wild animal life, great flocks of wild turkeys, antelope
and deer in herds of hundreds, and in the distance they looked like great
swarms of flies. There were coyotes and panthers, and streams alive
with fish. The beavers built dams in all the streams" That is how
this land, the very land you are standing on, looked less than 130 years
ago!

As you near the bottom
of the hill, you will see the Concho Valley Council Office, Boy Scouts
of America on your right. They moved into this building in 1974.
Prior to that time it was a Youth Center and prior to that a Serviceman's
Center during World War II. You are welcome to stop here. The
trading post is open between the hours of 8:00 AM and 5:00 PM Monday through
Friday.

Sit on the park bench across
the street from the Boy Scout office. Look across the river
to your right and you will see the El Camino Girl Scout Service Center.
It was originally constructed by the Works Progress Administration and
the City of San Angelo in 1939, following the flood on the Concho
River in the 1930's. It is a one-story cut stone building designed
by Architect Leonard Mauldin. The Girl Scout organization has
been the building's only occupant.

Further to your right you
will see the Chamber of Commerce. If you wish to visit, there are
two pedestrian bridges about ¼ mile west of the Boy Scout office.

Continue your hike by
walking south on Irving street. Cross the low water crossing.
The river in the 1880’s was a narrow stream flowing through
this area and there were no bridges. Dams have been built to give
make the river a pleasant look.

Stop at the Railroad Station.

This depot was the divisional
headquarters for the Old Kansas City, Mexico & Orient Railroad that
reached San Angelo in 1909. The "Orient" Railroad had begun five
years earlier when Arthur E. Stillwell organized the line in Wichita, Kansas,
with the hope of linking up with the port of Topolobampo, Mexico, on the
Gulf of California. From there it was a sea voyage to Oriental ports.

During the excitement of
the Orient's arrival, businessmen in Iowa had raised $40,000. to build
a line from Sterling City to San Angelo. When the line opened in
1910, it was immediately sold to Santa Fe, which violated the agreements
made during fund raising. Santa Fe finally agreed to return the $40,000
to San Angelo, but stipulated that the money be spent on a community project.
The money was spent to purchase 30 acres along the North Concho River,
now known as "Santa Fe Park" and includes the downtown city golf course.

Santa Fe bought out the Orient
in 1928 for $14,500,500. At one time a train every hour rolled through
San Angelo carrying equipment west and oil east from the West Texas oil
boom in the mid-twenties. Passenger service was discontinued in 1965.

Historic Orient-Santa Fe
Depot, Inc. began renovation of the depot in 1988 with volunteers and donations.
City officials stepped in with federal funding to complete the restoration.
It is now the City Bus Depot and a Railroad Museum.

The third mural by Crystal
Goodman is located at the corner of Chadbourne and Ave. C. This mural
depicts the styles of public transportation that was available in San Angelo
from 1840-1940.

Across Chadbourne Street
you will see the old Santa Fe Freight Station. This has been transformed
into a new Senior Citizens Center and headquarters for the Recreation department.

The building on the Northeast
corner of Chadbourne and Santa Fe Crossing housed the offices and facilities
of the DeCoty Coffee Company from 1937 until 1962.

The company started in August
1929 by C.T. Ducote, Sr. and his son Curry Ducote on North Chadbourne as
"Concho Coffee Company" sold coffee under the brand name "Red Triangle."
In June 1937, "DeCoty Coffee Company" moved to 618 South Chadbourne, becoming
the largest plant in San Angelo at that time. Ducote bought the property
from Kenneth Cox whose father had operated a Purina Chow Feed Mill store
there, having built the building about 1926.

Walk along the Santa Fe Crossing
(between 618 Santa Fe Crossing and the Freight Depot). At the intersection
of Orient Ave and Ave. B you will see “Old Town” at El Paseo de Santa Angela.
It is a repository for restored endangered historic buildings. Five
structures have been relocated to the site: the Zenker house, an
1880’s bank building, a 1909 Victorian residence, the Camunez grocery store
and a tiny 1880’s home. Oscar Ruffini, San Angelo’s pioneer architect
designed the bank and the Victorian residence.

Walk toward the river.
You will come to Orient Ave and Ave A. You will see the City Pool.
It was built in 1938 by the Works Progress Administration. There
is a historical marker to read at the entrance to the pool. In the area
you will also find a windmill, bronze sculptures, the Fine Arts Museum,
Celebration bridge, the outdoor amphitheater and a 9-11-01 memorial monument.

Once you have completed looking
at all the sights at this location, go east on Ave A to Oakes street and
turn right. Fort Concho is about one block away on the left.

As you get closer to Fort
Concho, think about what it must have been like to live in Santa Angela
or at the Fort in the 1800’s. Think of the distances that people
had to travel for supplies or the effort it took to see a doctor.

This map shows Fort Concho
as it looked back in the days when the fort was active.

Notable among the troops
that served at Fort Concho was the 9th and 10th Cavalry regiments composed
of Black enlisted men. The soldiers were garrisoned here at various
periods throughout the Fort's history. Often called the "Buffalo
Soldiers," these troopers earned a remarkable record as Indian fighters
and scouts.

The Indians gave the name
"Buffalo Soldiers" to them. The Indians compared the hair of the
troopers and the shaggy coats they wore to that of the buffalo. The
Indians meant no insult to the soldiers as they held the buffalo in high
regard. They depended upon the buffalo for their very existence.
After almost thirteen years of fighting Indians and chasing lawbreakers
the buffalo soldiers had tamed the Texas frontier. In 1880, they
were transferred to posts in other states, where there was still an Indian
problem.

Proceed to the first building
of Fort Concho. This is the first barracks building and now the
Visitor's Center. (on the map: #1)

If the Visitor's Center
is closed or a tour is not offered, you may use this guide to hike
around the fort and look at the buildings.

The building of the six
enlisted men's barracks (#1-6) at Fort Concho was a slow and tedious
process. By February 1869, the two barracks at the west end, (currently
the Visitor's Center) and the barracks next door had been raised to the
height of the stone walls. It was not until August of that year that
the buildings were finally occupied, even though they weren't completely
built. By November 1870, stonework for all additional barracks and the
guardhouse was complete; but they were not finished until the fall of 1871
due to a shortage of lumber. The other barracks, #3 - 6, were built
in 1871.

Stone for the Fort's construction
came from a quarry at Ben Ficklin, about five miles South of Fort Concho
on the Middle Concho River. Mortar for the stonework was made of
sand crushed from sandstone found nearby, and lime (burned in a limekiln)
from the same limestone used for building.

Pink colored mortar was used
to cement the stones together. The mortar color derives from the
sandstone bluffs across the river from the Convention Center, which were
chipped off and ground into sand.

Pecan timber at first was
cut on the banks of the Conchos and sawed into lumber on steam-driven saws
nearby. However, the hardness of the pecan, plus the cost of preparing
it, soon caused a change of materials. By 1870, pine, cypress lumber
and shingles, window frames, glass, doors, and trimmings were freighted
in from San Antonio and the Fredericksburg-Hill country area for most of
the buildings.

Behind the barracks is the
location of the stables. The horse tie rings are permanently embedded
in the perimeter masonry walls and can still be found there. Over
100 Comanche Indian women and children were held captive in the corrals
from late October, 1872, until May, 1873, when they were escorted to Fort
Sill to be reunited with their families. Colonel Ronald S. Mackenzie
and troops from Fort Concho captured them on a raid of a Comanche Camp
on the North Fork of Red River in the Texas panhandle on September 29,
1872. The building is now used for housing the fort collection, as
a maintenance shop, general storage and for special events

In the middle of Burgess
Street, a building (#7) no longer there, used to be the Fort Guardhouse
(jail). It was built of stone, in the same style and on line with
the barracks.

The building directly
across from barracks #6 is the Commissary Storehouse (#12), which
is the first Fort structure built, started in January of 1868. It
is also the oldest building in San Angelo. This is essentially a
twin of the Quartermaster Storehouse just to the right of it.

The Quartermaster Storehouse
(#13) was built in 1868 and was the second structure to be built at
the fort. It has survived two major fires (which destroyed
the original roof structure), masonry structural failure, and basic neglect.
Restoration was completed in 1983 and the building now houses _____________________________.

Continue South to the
headquarters building (#14) which was constructed in 1876. For
three years (from 1878 to1881) Fort Concho was Headquarters of the District
of the Pecos in the Army Department of Texas. Business concerning
the District, which included Forts Concho, Davis, Stockton and Griffin,
as well as eight sub-posts, was conducted here along with the usual Post
affairs.

There are ____ plaques
on the front of the Headquarters Building.

Look for a typical wood
clapboard constructed home and office that stands behind the headquarters
building. It belonged to Oscar Ruffini, who designed many of the old buildings
for businesses in the heart of San Angelo. Notice the false front on the
building and the chimneys. What braces the chimneys? This building was
moved here in 1951 from its original downtown location.

Just south and across
the street is located the Post __________________________ (#17) The
building, completed in 1870, is almost a twin of the hospital located at
Fort Richardson near Jacksboro, Texas It was the largest and finest structure
at the fort. A strange thing happened one night at the post hospital,
involving a black soldier named "Dead" Ellis. Ellis apparently became
so intoxicated one night that the muscles in his body went rigid.
Ellis was near death from alcohol poisoning, but had not yet "passed” on.
Ellis' condition fooled the men who happened upon his body, and the stiff
soldier was taken to the post hospital, pronounced dead, and laid out in
the "dead room" for burial on the next day. Ellis' friends gathered
by the coffin that night to lament his demise. A jug of whiskey passed
between the mourners. All went well until sometime after midnight
when one of the men leaned over the coffin for a final, lachrymonious good-bye.
Ellis twitched! The mourner looked again. Ellis twitched again! "That
man ain't dead! He's getting up!” the mourner yelled. Almost
instantaneously all the men in the room were getting up, too, and diving
through the first available window or door. When Ellis saw the coffin
walls surrounding him, he was supposed to have nearly killed himself for
real by jumping through a window to get out. He survived his wild night
to live a long life, forever pegged with the name "Dead" Ellis - the man
who came back from death.

A similar building is located
at Fort McKavett, Texas except that the second story was never built on
that hospital. The hospital at Fort Concho was struck by lightening and
burned and was raxed in 1929. The hospital was reconstructed in 1988.

One of the last structures
completed at the Fort was the Schoolhouse/Chapel. (#18) On February
22, 1879, the structure was dedicated and described to be the "best furnished
room in the post." The building was used for a school, a chapel,
and for social gatherings at the Fort such as dances. It is now used
for Frontier School Days. There are two ____________________
____________________ behind and attached to the building.

Officer's Quarters (O.Q.
Building #9 (#19 on the map) was built in 1872. The building
plan and form is very similar to #8 and the original #1. The plaque
on the front reads: _______________________________________________________________________.

Construction on O.Q.#8
(#20) commenced in 1871 and was finished in 1872. Like most of
the quarters, it was remodeled following the military evacuation and
a stone addition was completed at the rear of the structure.

O.Q.#7 (#21), began
in 1876 and finished in 1877, was the last officer's quarters built on
the post. This was a duplex. The building is now used to house
special events and as a library and archives.

O.Q.#6 (#22) was built
in 1870. This building was identical to Numbers 2, 4 and 5.
On the West Side of the building around the second story windows, are pieces
of metal used to hold window shutters open. What shape are thes metal
pieces? _____________________________________

What does O.Q.#5 (#23),
built in 1870, look like? ___________________________________

O.Q.#4 (#24), built
in 1870, now houses the GTE Museum of Telephony.

4.Q. #3 (#25) may
have been the first quarters built in 1870. It is larger than the
other single quarters and appears to be of better quality than many of
the comparable existing structures. It was used as quarters for the
commanding officer until O.Q.#1 was finished. It has one of the few
relatively intact original interiors.

O.Q. #2 (#26) was
one of the first five officer's quarters built and was finished by March
1, 1870. The parlor room was the site of the first wedding at the
fort, that of Miss Jessie Caldwell and Lt. Byron Dawson on April 26, 1870.
This building has _____ chimneys.

Officer's Quarters #1
(#27) was started in August 1870, but was not completed until 1875.
The post commander occupied it in May of 1872. Colonel Benjamin H.
Grierson moved into the building in 1875, and during his tenure had an
office wing added on the West side, a kitchen added at the South end, and
some stone stables constructed behind the house. The O.Q.#1
is ____ stories high and has _____ chimneys.

The Fort's closing was an
inevitable event, brought about by the growth of San Angelo, the coming
of the railroad, and the diminished need for a frontier military establishment.
The flag was lowered for the last time on June 20, 1889.

The stone buildings and the
land on which they stand, reverted back to the original landowners, Adams
and Wickes. The Army had only been a rent-paying tenant. In
1905, the Concho Realty Company was formed. The Company purchased
the Fort grounds with all the structures for $15,000. A real estate
addition was then organized and the various buildings sold to individuals.
The preservation of the existing buildings and the restoration of the destroyed
ones were begun in 1930 by Mrs. Ginevra Wood Carson. She moved
the West Texas Museum to the headquarters building and renamed it Fort
Concho Museum. Fort Concho has since acquired all of the property
you see here today.

This completes the Fort
Concho Historical Trail. Fort Concho Historical Trail Patches are available
from the Concho Valley Council Office. The price is $4.00 and can
only be purchased by the leader. Thank you for traveling this way and letting
us share this history with you!

The Fort Concho Historical
trail was updated in 2006 by Suzanne Campbell, Curator of the West Texas
Collection and Lisa Mahler, Office Manager at Concho Valley Council, BSA.

A new patch was designed
by Hugh Campbell of San Angelo. He is an artist that paints traditional
West Texas ranch genre. He works in mediums of pastels, oils and
bronzes. Campbell’s art has garnered many awards nationally.
You can view some of his works at www.hughcampbellwesternart.com/

READ MORE ABOUT IT

The following books are available
at the Tom Green County Library to help you read more about San Angelo
and Fort Concho:

A Walk Through Historic
San Angelo by the Tom Green County Library StaffFort Concho and the Texas
Frontier by J. Evetts HaleyHistorical Montage of
Tom Green County by the Tom Green County Historical SocietyFort Concho in 1877
by Susan MilesA History of Fort Concho
(thesis) by Herschel BoggsOld Angelo by Joe
GibsonTexas Ranchman: The Memoirs
of John A. Loomis by John LoomisThe Concho Country
by Gus ClemensThe History of Tom Green
County, Texas by Grace BitnerFort Concho by James
T. Matthews

FORT CONCHO HISTORICAL
TRAIL OFFICIAL APPLICATION

Girl Scout Troop #_____Boy
Scout Troop #_____Cub Scout Pack #_______

Council________________________________

Town ___________________
State ____________requests permission to hike theFort Concho Historical Trail
on the following date:___________________

ZIP________________________Total Number of hikers:
_______ Female _____Male ______ Adults ________We will obtain a Local/National
Tour Permit from our local Boy Scout Council. We understand that troops
out of the San Angelo area cannot hike the trail without the tour permit.